ABA Skill Acquisition and Teaching Procedures 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In discrete trial training (DTT), what is the correct sequence of components?
- SD → Response → Consequence (Correct answer)
- Antecedent → Consequence → Response
- Response → SD → Reinforcement
- Consequence → Antecedent → Behavior
Correct answer: SD → Response → Consequence
A discrete trial consists of a discriminative stimulus (SD), the learner's response, and the delivered consequence, in that order.
Question 2: Which prompting strategy involves providing the least intrusive prompt first and increasing only if needed?
- Least-to-most prompting (Correct answer)
- Most-to-least prompting
- Simultaneous prompting
- Time delay
Correct answer: Least-to-most prompting
Least-to-most prompting starts with minimal assistance and increases prompt intensity only when the learner does not respond correctly.
Question 3: Progressive time delay involves:
- Gradually increasing the delay between the SD and the prompt across trials (Correct answer)
- Providing the prompt simultaneously with the SD initially
- Using a fixed 5-second delay from the start
- Removing prompts entirely after the first session
Correct answer: Gradually increasing the delay between the SD and the prompt across trials
Progressive time delay systematically increases the wait time between the SD and prompt delivery across trials, promoting independent responding.
Question 4: What is the purpose of a task analysis in ABA?
- To break a complex skill into a sequence of smaller teachable steps (Correct answer)
- To identify the function of a behavior
- To measure the rate of a target behavior
- To determine appropriate reinforcement schedules
Correct answer: To break a complex skill into a sequence of smaller teachable steps
A task analysis breaks a complex chained behavior into individual component steps that can be taught and measured separately.
Question 5: In backward chaining, teaching begins with:
- The last step of the task analysis (Correct answer)
- The first step of the task analysis
- The most difficult step
- A randomly selected step
Correct answer: The last step of the task analysis
Backward chaining starts instruction with the final step of the chain, with the trainer completing all prior steps, so the learner always experiences the reinforcing end of the chain.
Question 6: Which prompting type involves physically guiding the learner through the correct response?
- Physical prompt (Correct answer)
- Gestural prompt
- Positional prompt
- Modeling prompt
Correct answer: Physical prompt
A physical prompt involves the trainer physically guiding the learner's body through the correct response, and it is considered the most intrusive prompt type.
ABA Skill Acquisition and Teaching Procedures 1
In discrete trial training (DTT), what is the correct sequence of components?